Cigarette case



June 26, 1951 A. SHERMAN CIGARETTE CASE Filed Dec. 5, 1945 Patented June 26, 1951' 2,558,586 CIGARETTE CASE Albert Sherman, New York, N. Y.

Application December 5, 1945, Serial No. 632,897

2 Claims.' (Cl. 206-38) My invention relates particularly to containers which are intended to hold cigarettes or the like, and be carried about the person or placed about the house. The object of my invention is to provide a cigarette container which incorporates simple means for holding a book of matches also and for permitting a match to be conveniently struck on the prepared igniting strip of the said match book whilst the remaining matches are afforded constant protection from accidental ignition by the match being struck.

Although many types of cigarette caseshave been designed or suggested heretofore, relatively few have made provision for holding a book of matches in addition to the cigarettes, and none has made said provision in such a manner as to permit a match to be conveniently struck on the prepared igniting strip of the match book whilst the remaining matches are afforded constant protection against accidental ignition by the match being struck and thereby being ignited. My invention, by virtue of structure that is unique in the art and is described hereafter in this specification, does make said provision in such manner. The desirability of the aforesaidalways-present protection is attested by the admonition Close Cover Before Striking printed on the cover folders of the commonly available commercial books of matches, sometimes known as combs of matches.

In the accompanying drawing, a preferred embodiment of my invention is disclosed by way of example. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, however, that my invention is not limited to the example shown but is capable of various adaptations and modifications without departing from its novelty or intent.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is the side view and Figure 2 the front view of a cigarette case of my invention shown in the closed condition. Figure 3 is the side view of the same cigarette case but in the open condition, shown partially sectioned and partially cut away. Figure 4 is the top view of Figure 3. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the common commercially available book of matches shown with its folder completely open.

In the form of my invention disclosed in Figures 1 to 4 inclusive, the cigarette case is shown as being in two parts, the cover I and the box 2, movably hinged together by two pivots 3 which are coaxially positioned on opposite sides. For purposes of illustration, the pivots are shown as conical protuberances formed in the box 2 and nesting within matching sockets formed in the cover I. The cover I as shown comprises the major portions of the front and top faces of the cigarette case and overlapping portions of the two opposite sides, said side portions containing the sockets of the pivots 3. The box 2 comprises a portion of the front face, the back and bottom faces of the cigarette case, and the major portions of the two opposite sides which are partially overlapped by the side portions of the cover I, said overlapped portions of the sides of the box 2 containing the pivots 3.

Various means known to the art may be employed to maintain the cigarette case of my invention in the closed condition or allow it to be opened as desired, but for purposes of illustration I have drawn a simple spring catch 5. The cigarettes 5 are shown as being retained in the paper container 6 in which they are commonly sold as packs of twenty cigarettes. The container 6 of cigarettes is inserted in the box 2 of the cigarette case when required, and a portion of the paper container 6 is torn away, as is the common practise, to expose the cigarettes.

Near the upper edge of the front face of the cover I is a perforation I having a laterally extending rectangular shape of a proper size for its purpose which will be disclosed presently. Inside the cover I and spaced 2. required small distance from its front face opposite the hole I, is attached a thin fiat member 8 which serves to clip the base 9 of an ordinary package of paper matches If]. These matches, which are commonly referred to as a book of matches, are usually sold enclosed in a paperboard folder I l to whose base the bases of the matches are fastened. At the base of the paperboard folder i! is aspecially prepared strip I2 of the outside surface on which the matches must be struck to be ignited. When the base 9 of a book of matches it is properly inserted between the member 8 and the front face of the cover i and is held there by the pressure of the member 8, the prepared surface I2 is exposed to the outside through the hole I. Before the matches are placed in the cigarette case in the position just described, the paperboard folder II is fully opened as shown in Figure 5-. After the matches are clipped in place in the cigarette case, the free portion of the folder H, projecting beyond the member 8, is torn off, exposing the matches [0.

When the cigarette case of my invention, supplied with cigarettes and matches as described, is opened to expose the contents, the entire assembly can be held in one hand and the other hand is free to take a cigarette and match with.

a maximum amount of convenience and a minimum amount of waste motion. The cigarette case subsequently can be snapped shut and the match can be struck and ignited conveniently on the prepared strip l2 of the match book which is exposed through the hole I, the heads of the other matches H3 being safely stowed away inside the cigarette case. If, for any reason, the cigarette case be left open when the selected match is ignited by being struck, the heads of the remaining matches Iii are still fully protected from accidental ignition by the match being struck by virtue of the constantly interposed structure of the cover I. The aforementioned constantly afforded protection to the remaining matches is new in the art and is an inherent advantage of the novel structure of my invention. My invention, therer fore, eliminates hunting for the strayed match book on ones person, the opening and shutting of the match-book folder every time a match has to be struck, and unnecessary juggling of smoking equipment each time a cigarette is ignited, which is the usual smokers procedure. The simplicity of construction of my invention, furthermore, is productive of cheapness of price, and the wellknown reliability of matches is an additional source of satisfaction, especially as contrasted with commercially available designs of cigarette cases competitive to my'invention but which in corporate cigarette lighters employing flints, wicks and combustible fluid.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a, container for holding cigarettes or the like comprising a cover part and a box partj an elongated perforation in an outer face of the cover part, said perforation being suitably positioned and of a size and shape suitable for exposing the prepared striking strip of a book of matches to the operation of striking a match thereon; a clasp member positioned on the inside of the cover part oppositely to the said elongated perforation so as to be capable of holding a book of matches by its base against the inside surface of the aforesaid cover part with the striking strip of the said book of matches exposed to the outside through the said elongated perforation.

2. In combination: a container for holding cigarettes or the like comprising a cover part and a box part, the said cover part comprising ubstantially all of the top face and a large portion of the front face of the exterior shell of the container, and being movably hinged at the lower end of its front face to the box part which comprises the remainder of the exterior shell of the said container; in the front face of the said cover part an elongated perforation preferably rectangular in shape and sufficiently large to expose the major portion of the striking strip of a book of matches; a clasp member fastened to the inside surface of the front face of the said cover part and positioned oppositely to the said elongated perforation so as to be capable of holding a book of matches by its base against the inside surface of the said cover part with the striking strip of the said book of matches exposed to the outside through the said elongated perforation.

ALBERT SHERMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED sTATEs PATENTS Number Name Date 1,471,912 Oppenheim Oct. 23, 1923 1,495,872 Olsen May 27, 1924 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 293,545 Great Britain July 12, 1928 494,920 Great Britain Nov. 3, 1938 

